Washington Wizards Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Community Shootaround: Most Improved Lottery Team In East?

July 13th, 2016 at 2:46pm CST by Luke Adams

This past spring, the Bulls, Wizards, Magic, Bucks, Knicks, Nets, and 76ers all failed to make the playoffs in the Eastern Conference, finishing in the lottery. All seven of those teams have been very active so far this offseason, signing free agents and adding players to their roster via trades and/or the draft.

The Bulls and Knicks have perhaps been the most visible of the Eastern lottery teams in recent weeks, beginning with the five-player trade they completed that sent Derrick Rose to New York and Robin Lopez to Chicago. Since then, the Bulls have added Dwyane Wade and Rajon Rondo in free agency, while the Knicks have signed Joakim Noah, Courtney Lee, and Brandon Jennings, among others.

The two lottery teams from the Southeast – the Wizards and Magic – have also undergone some roster upheaval this summer. Washington re-upped restricted free agent Bradley Beal and made changes elsewhere, bringing in Ian Mahinmi, Andrew Nicholson, and Jason Smith, while letting go of Nene, Jared Dudley, and Ramon Sessions. Orlando was even more active, re-signing Evan Fournier, trading for Serge Ibaka, and adding D.J. Augustin, Jeff Green, and Bismack Biyombo.

The Bucks have been a little quieter, but they secured a pair of solid role players in free agency, signing Matthew Dellavedova and Mirza Teletovic. They also drafted Thon Maker, adding another athletic prospect with upside to a promising young core.

Like Milwaukee, the Sixers didn’t make a huge splash, but with Gerald Henderson, Jerryd Bayless, and Sergio Rodriguez entering the mix, the rebuilding franchise has more of a veteran presence. And if Dario Saric finalizes a deal with Philadelphia, the club feels it has three players – Saric, Joel Embiid, and No. 1 pick Ben Simmons – capable of competing for the Rookie of the Year award.

Finally, the Nets missed out on two RFA targets, when their offer sheets for Tyler Johnson and Allen Crabbe were matched. Their other free agent signings, including Jeremy Lin, Greivis Vasquez, Trevor Booker, Luis Scola, and Justin Hamilton – have been modest.

Today’s discussion question focuses on these seven teams, and their offseason transactions. Which team do you think improved the most? Which series of moves do you like best? Which of these non-playoff teams do you think is most likely to end up qualifying for the postseason next spring?

Take to the comments section below to share your thoughts and opinions on the Bulls, Wizards, Magic, Bucks, Knicks, Nets, and Sixers. We look forward to hearing what you have to say.

Alan Anderson Still On Wizards' Radar

July 12th, 2016 at 12:49pm CST by Luke Adams

There were some players and coaches for the Wizards last season who viewed Gary Neal as “selfish,” and as someone who was most concerned about his own stats, writes J. Michael of CSNMidAtlantic.com. On his Facebook page this week, Neal posted some of those stats as he attempted to make a case for why he should be in line for a free-agency payday.
Although the Wizards had been expected to meet with Alan Anderson over the weekend, that meeting still hadn’t happened as of Monday afternoon, tweets Michael. However, Anderson remains in the picture for Washington, per the CSN scribe.

Burke Gets New Start In Washington

July 10th, 2016 at 1:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

Former lottery pick Trey Burke is excited about the chance to revive his career with the Wizards, writes Gene Wang of The Washington Post. Washington acquired the third-year point guard last week in a trade with the Jazz, sending a 2021 second-round pick to Utah in return. Burke had fallen to the bottom of the depth chart in Utah and figured to have his playing time severely cut with the Jazz trading for George Hill and getting Dante Exum back from a year-long injury. Instead, he gets to join the Wizards and back up one of his favorite points guards. “I think it’s just a good fit for me, obviously playing behind John Wall,” Burke said. “He’s an established guard right now. Learning from him, I’m looking forward to the opportunity. I’ve heard nothing but good things about the city. It’s just great to know that I’m welcome to another organization.” Burke has one year left on his contract at nearly $3.4MM.

Wizards To Sign Daniel Ochefu

July 7th, 2016 at 7:29pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Wizards have reached an agreement on a contract with unrestricted free agent Daniel Ochefu, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders reports (Twitter link). It’s a three-year, minimum salary deal for Ochefu that includes a partial guarantee of $50K for next season, Pincus adds.

The forward out of Villanova went undrafted this year and has to be considered a longshot to make the opening night roster. The Wizards have already bolstered their bench this offseason, adding Ian Mahinmi, Jason Smith and Andrew Nicholson to split time backing up Marcin Gortat and Markieff Morris.

In 37 appearances as a senior for the Wildcats, Ochefu notched averages of 10.0 points, 7.5 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 23.4 minutes per outing. His shooting line for 2015/16 was .627/.000/.684.

Wizards Acquire Trey Burke

July 7th, 2016 at 3:27pm CST by Arthur Hill

JULY 7TH: The trade is now official, the Jazz announced.

JULY 3RD: The Jazz are close to completing a trade that will send point guard Trey Burke to the Wizards, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. Utah will reportedly receive a second-round pick in return (Twitter link). The pick is for 2021, tweets TNT’s David Aldridge.

Burke has been on the trading block since the Jazz made a deal to acquire George Hill from the Pacers. Burke has spent his entire three-year career with Utah after being acquired from the Timberwolves in a 2013 draft-day deal. He averaged 10.6 points and 2.3 rebounds per game this season in a reserve role, but there were rumblings that Jazz management had soured on Burke after he failed to win the starting job when Dante Exum was lost for the season with an injury.

Burke’s acquisition may mean the Wizards are not planning to re-sign point guards Ramon Sessions and Garrett Temple. Both are 30-year-old free agents.

Free Agent Notes: Timberwolves, Wizards, Randolph

July 7th, 2016 at 1:15pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Timberwolves offered veteran small forward Luol Deng a three-year contract at $12MM per season, according to Darren Wolfson of KSTP Radio (Twitter link). Head coach and president of basketball operations Tim Thobideau refused to fully guarantee the third year, Wolfson adds. In the end, the Timberwolves didn’t come close to signing Deng, as the former Heat starter agreed to a four-year, $72MM contract with the Lakers.

In other news regarding free agency:

The Wizards have interest in re-signing shooting guard Alan Anderson and will meet with him this weekend, league sources told J. Michael of CSNmidlatlantic.com (Twitter links). The meeting is expected to take place in Las Vegas, Michael adds. Anderson, who made $4MM last season, appeared in just 13 games with the Wizards after undergoing a second surgery on his left ankle. The previous season, he played in 74 games with the Nets and averaged 7.4 points in 23.6 minutes.
Shooting guard Brandon Paul is drawing major interest around the league after some strong performances for the Hornets’ summer-league team, Sportando tweets. He’s averaging 15.3 points and 7.3 rebounds through four games in the Orlando Summer League. The 6’4” Paul went undrafted in 2013 out of the University of Illinois and has been playing for a Spanish league team, FIATC Joventut.
Forward Anthony Randolph will remain in Europe and sign a one-year deal with Spain’s Real Madrid, a source told Marc J. Spears of ESPN.com (Twitter links). Randolph received interest from the Mavericks this summer, Spears adds. The contract will be the $1.5MM-$2MM range, international journalist David Pick tweets. The 6’11” Randolph hasn’t played in the NBA since the 2013/14 season, when he appeared in 43 games with the Nuggets.
Power forward Willie Reed has drawn interest from the Warriors, Spurs, Heat, Thunder, Timberwolves and Pacers, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders tweets. Reed, an unrestricted free agent, averaged 4.7 points and 3.1 rebounds in 10.9 minutes over 39 games with the Nets last season.
Free agent center Robert Sacre, who played the last four seasons with the Lakers, has drawn interest from the Timberwolves and Rockets, Wolfson reports in a separate tweet.

Wizards Decline Option On Drew Gooden

July 7th, 2016 at 11:50am CST by Dana Gauruder

The Wizards have declined their option on veteran power forward Drew Gooden, making him an unrestricted free agent. The news was first reported by ESPN.com’s Marc Stein and confirmed as official in a tweet from J. Michael of CSNMidatlantic.com.

Salary-cap issues forced the Wizards to set Gooden free. Gooden’s $3.5MM salary for 2016/17 would have been guaranteed if he remained on the roster on July 15. Washington’s guaranteed payroll jumped to $96MM with the reported free agent additions of three other big men, Ian Mahinmi, Andrew Nicholson and Jason Smith.

Gooden, who turns 35 in September, has played in Washington the past three seasons. He appeared in 30 games last season, averaging 2.7 points and 2.8 rebounds in 10.2 minutes. A calf injury was partially responsible for Gooden’s lack of playing time.

Gooden, who has been in the league since the 2002/03 season, has developed into a stretch four during the latter stages of his career. He averaged 41.2% and 39.0%, respectively, on 3-point attempts during his first two seasons with the Wizards. That dropped to 17.1% in limited action last season.

Wizards Announce 2016/17 Staff

July 5th, 2016 at 8:32pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Wizards announced today that the team has named Tony Brown, Sidney Lowe, Chad Iske, Mike Terpstra and Maz Trakh as assistants on head coach Scott Brooks’ staff. Eric Sebastian, director of coaching operations, and Kamran Sufi, advance scout, were also named by the team while David Adkins will stay on as the team’s director of player development, according to the press release.

Wizards To Sign Jason Smith

July 5th, 2016 at 6:31pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Kim Klement/USA TODAY Sports

The Wizards and unrestricted free agent Jason Smith have agreed to a deal, Shams Charania of The Vertical reports (via Twitter). It will be a three-year, $16MM pact, J. Michael of CSNMidAtlantic.com tweets. Smith has a player option for the final season, Michael adds.

The 30-year-old big man spent the 2015/16 campaign with the Magic, appearing in 76 games and averaging 7.2 points, 2.9 rebounds and 0.8 assists in 15.5 minutes per outing. Smith’s shooting line on the year was .485/.250/.806.

In Smith, Washington adds a big man capable of stretching the floor with his shooting when he’s on, though the former No. 20 overall pick (2007, Miami) only owns a career mark of .293 from beyond the arc. His most successful campaign from deep was the 2014/15 season when he nailed 35.7% of his threes for the Knicks. But Smith is certainly a solid addition as a role-player, with Smith set to compete against Andrew Nicholson and Drew Gooden for minutes off the bench next season.

Andrew Nicholson To Sign With Wizards

July 3rd, 2016 at 10:22am CST by Arthur Hill

Apr 1, 2016; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Orlando Magic forward Andrew Nicholson (44) shoots during the first quarter against the Milwaukee Bucks at BMO Harris Bradley Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

Jeff Hanisch / USA TODAY Sports Images

Andrew Nicholson will sign a four-year, $26MM deal with the Wizards, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. He will have a player option on his final season, tweets Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today.

The 26-year-old power forward became an unrestricted free agent this week when the Magic elected not to submit a qualifying offer. He spent four years in Orlando and averaged 6.9 points and 3.6 rebounds in 56 games this season.

The Wizards are in need of big men, entering free agency with only center Marcin Gortat and power forward Markieff Morris signed for next season. They reached an agreement with Pacers center Ian Mahinmi on Saturday.